Owing to skyrocketing living expenses, the white goods sale in the city has come down considerably. Nationally, the electronics goods sale is down by 37 per cent in the last six months. Major players in the field in the state said that in Kerala the electronics goods sale is down by 41 per cent.
Since the city of Kochi contributes lion’s portion to the overall market in the state, the drop in business here is even more, they said. But on the other hand the tablet market is showing a growth of 20-30 per cent and laptop sales is registering steady growth as well.
Mathew Kuruvithadam, managing director, Kuruvithadam Agencies Private Limited said the negative sentiment prevailing in the economy is the major reason behind the drop in sales. “The purchasing power of the people is decreasing on a daily basis. After the improvement in sales during the last Onam season, there has been a sharp slump in business. The prices of electronic goods were up by at least 35 per cent in the last one year, this may be another reason behind the negative customer sentiment,” he said.
He added that though the price of LCD and LED televisions were down by 15 per cent in recent times, these products also found few takers.
Divakar Prabhu, chief executive officer, International Marketing Company, dealers in computers and peripherals said that tablets are the hot takes in the industry now.
“The price of laptops has fallen by 25-35 per cent in the last one year. Now this segment is showing a steady growth as people prefer laptops to desktops. But after October last year, the industry indeed has witnessed a slowdown. Now people put off their buying decisions owing to a shrinkage in their dispensable income,” he added.
Binni Immatty, president, Kerala State Vyapari Vyavasayi Samithi said the recent policy decisions by the government is not only anti-people but anti-traders as well.
“In Kerala the power tariff hike and restrictions on usage have proved to be an alarm bell for the traders as small shop owners are forced to pull down their shutters,” he added.